Pictured above: David George, associate partner in Deloitte's information and technology risk practice in the Midlands

Business advisory firm Deloitte has launched a new smartphone application to help businesses manage disasters and crises.

The application, called 'Bamboo', is the first one of its kind in this field and is not reliant on mobile network connectivity to work.

Bamboo works by storing up-to-date disaster procedures and action-plans on employees' mobile devices, such as the Blackberry or iPhone. Management can communicate with their employees immediately to inform them of an incident, verify their safety and location, and communicate necessary actions and contact details - all via their handsets.

The 'app' will be given to 100,000 Deloitte employees around the world and is also available to clients.

David George, associate partner in Deloitte's information and technology risk practice in the Midlands, said: "Recent tragic events around the world continue to highlight the importance of an effective and swift incident response. Reacting quickly minimises the potential impact of a disaster on an organisation. Deloitte created Bamboo to simplify this process for both our employees and our clients.

"Clients have asked us to help them access their essential information and the technology to use it effectively. In recent incidents they found plans were out-of-date, contact details were incorrect and the telecommunications network suffered failures making voice and data communications difficult.

"During an incident, the majority of employees take only their personal belongings with them, such as wallets, keys and, of course, their mobile phones.

"With Bamboo, staff will now be able to access their individual action plans, regardless of location or mobile network connectivity."